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Brooks Saying Little About Hurt Hamstring

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By IRA KAUFMAN The Tampa Tribune

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 11, 2008

TAMPA - Derrick Brooks isn't talking about it and Monte Kiffin doesn't even want to think about it.

A hamstring strain that sidelined Brooks during the final stages of Sunday's loss at New Orleans threatens to end his streak of 193 consecutive starts, tops among all NFL defensive players.

Brooks, 35, didn't practice Wednesday as the Bucs prepared for the home opener against Atlanta. The 10-time Pro Bowl linebacker says he's not at liberty to discuss his condition, by order of Coach Jon Gruden.

"We'll know on game day whether I'll be ready to go or not," said Brooks, who hasn't missed a start since Kiffin became defensive coordinator in 1996. "I was told by my head coach not to really go into details about my situation and my injury. I'm under strict orders, more of a gag order."

Brooks said he hasn't missed meaningful snaps since high school, when he suffered a concussion that kept him off the field for the first half.

He was distraught after Sunday's 24-20 setback as the Saints rallied with Brooks on the bench, his right thigh wrapped with ice.

"If I don't see No. 55 jumping up and down before the game, it'll be different," Kiffin said. "It's day to day right now."

Gruden said Brooks remains questionable for the Falcons, who shredded Detroit for a franchise-record 318 yards on the ground in a 34-21 triumph.

"We just hope he can keep his string alive because we need him," Gruden said. "I know if he doesn't play, it will really disappoint him, just to put it mildly."

SEEKING OPPORTUNITY: WR Michael Clayton, the first player drafted by the Bucs during Bruce Allen's tenure as GM, said he's open to the possibility of continuing his career elsewhere when his contract expires at the end of the season.

A first-round pick in 2004, Clayton was inactive for Week 1 as the Bucs dressed Joey Galloway, Ike Hilliard, Antonio Bryant, Maurice Stovall and rookie Dexter Jackson.

"I don't mind starting over with a team that would like to let me play," Clayton said Wednesday. "If that's what I have to do to keep my career alive, then that's what's given to me. I just hope everybody continues to do well, because I don't want any handouts from injury, or whatever.

"But if the opportunity presents itself where I'm not playing, it definitely will be a situation where I have to make a move."

With Stovall nursing a back injury, Clayton may find himself back in uniform against the Falcons.

SEEKING REVENGE: New Orleans rolled up 438 yards Sunday, the most allowed by the Bucs since a late-season game at Chicago in 2006.

"It's a learning experience and it's good for us," said DE Greg White, who posted Tampa Bay's only sack against Drew Brees. "We're not as good as we thought we were and we're going to work even harder to get back to where we want to be."

The big challenge this week is stuffing Atlanta's ground game and putting the ball in the hands of rookie QB Matt Ryan, who threw only 13 times against the Lions.

"They have a heck of a quarterback," Gruden said. "This guy's a promising superstar, I think, in the league."

Ira Kaufman, Roy Cummings

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